The present disclosure generally relates to satellite communications, and more specifically to a multi-beam antenna that can provide concurrent communication with multiple geostationary satellites.
A geostationary satellite is a satellite that is in geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) about 35,800 km above Earth's equator, and has a revolution around the Earth synchronized with Earth's rotation. As a result, the geostationary satellite appears stationary to an observer on the Earth's surface.
Geostationary satellites occupy orbital slots separated in longitude along the geostationary arc above the Earth's equator. These geostationary satellites, which operate using various frequencies and polarizations, provide a variety of broadcast and communication services.
A ground-based antenna for communication with a geostationary satellite typically has high antenna gain and a very narrow beam pointed at the geostationary satellite, because of the large distance to the satellite and to avoid interference with other satellites. To communicate with multiple geostationary satellites, a given location may include multiple antennas that individually communicate with one of the satellites. However, having multiple antennas at a given location can be difficult and costly.